Indulgence
by Amarissia
Summary: Cloud's sixteenth birthday, and the rite of passage that comes with it. Part of the Decorum series. Features CloudSephZack, CloudSeph, and SephZack.
1. Chapter 1

_It occurred to me that there's been very little yaoi-ish yumminess in the "Decorum" series, and I hope this one, which will be in two parts, will remedy that. This one is M not because the whole series is, but because there is sex ahead. Oh yes._

_SquareEnix owns, I play, you read and review, you know the drill. : )_

**INDULGENCE**

"Zack?"

The office had been unusually quiet for the last ten minutes or so. As much as Cloud liked doing his homework here, with Zack close by to smile at him and offer help with difficult questions, he usually had to deal with more noise than this. Zack could never concentrate on paperwork for long before tickling or bouncing or suggesting they go do something more fun. Cloud hated to interrupt him now, when he was actually focused, but he couldn't hold back what was on his mind any longer.

As expected, Zack looked up from his computer monitor and grinned. "Yeah, Spiky?"

"Can I talk to you about something, or is this a bad time to distract you?"

"Good time, I promise. What's up?"

Aw, how cute. No matter how many times he had observed it, Cloud's shyness and reluctance to speak up was the most adorable thing Zack had ever seen. He wanted to leap across the desk to the couch and squeeze Cloud and bury his nose in that soft, bright hair. Cloud was usually pretty good with being cuddled and clung to, and besides, it was his own fault for being so squeezable. But they both had work to do, and he could practically hear Sephiroth's voice: "This is not the time or the place, Zack."

"Um, you know how my birthday is coming up?"

"Of course! Are you finally gonna tell me what you want?"

"No. Do you remember what you and Sephiroth told me about my sixteenth birthday?"

It was Sephiroth who had insisted, though Zack agreed (with a grumble or two) that he was right. Mature or not, they had decided that Cloud was, at fifteen, a little young for actual sex. Cloud protested this but Sephiroth had, predictably, held his ground, promising that the prohibition would end on his next birthday. Zack briefly considered making a joke with the words "Grand Opening" in it, but Cloud was being serious, so he refrained.

"Uh-huh. What's wrong, you need more time?"

Wide sky-blue eyes, normally the very picture of innocence, narrowed. "If you two make me wait even a day longer, I'll kill you."

"Like I always tell Seph," Zack laughed, "you look sweet, but you're dangerous. Sorry, kiddo, pouting only makes you cuter. So what's on your mind?"

The scowl disappeared, and Cloud was his uncertain self again. "Who is it...going to be with? My first time, I mean. You or Sephiroth?"

"We talked about that."

"You did?"

"We talk about you all the time." Zack smiled. "We agreed that it's entirely up to you."

Cloud's face fell. "I can't do that. I can't choose one of you over the other."

"Baby," Zack began, and Cloud's heart fluttered to hear that word he protested from everyone else, "the first time is a big deal, but it's about you more than either of us. You're gonna have plenty of times with me _and_ Seph. I promise, whatever you choose, we're both fine with it. He's not gonna get offended if I go first, I'm not gonna get offended if he goes first. Heh, I'm kinda making you sound like a carnival ride. Sorry about that."

"But I..." Cloud looked almost tearful. "I love you both."

Zack was up faster than non-makoed eyes could see, sinking down onto the couch and pulling Cloud close. "We love you too, baby. I _promise_, no one will think you favor one of us, no matter who you pick."

"Really?"

"Trust me. Gaia, you're full of silly ideas today," Zack teased, combing his fingers through the fine blond hair, "first thinking I could forget your birthday, and now this."

"I didn't think you forgot."

"Good, 'cause I'm not _that_ scatterbrained. Anyway, it's marked on my calendar with exclamation marks and hearts and X-rated stick figures."

"Zack!" Cloud pulled back, relieved to see a mischievous smile. "Tell me you're kidding."

"I am, I am. It just says 'Spiky's Birthday', and then a smiley face. But I'll make it more explicit if you don't stop worrying about this. The three of us will have our whole lives." Cloud beamed at him, and Zack instantly did the same. "That day is only about you."

Cloud's eyes flickered away for a moment, and when they returned they were thoughtful. "Could you...is there a way you could both do it at the same time?"

Zack didn't answer, but it didn't seem to be his fault. The way his pale eyes (how Cloud loved them!) stopped blinking and his face went slack made the boy afraid that Zack was having a seizure or a stroke or something and, alarmed, he grabbed Zack's shoulders and shook him. The 1st's jaw was hanging open and flapped a little with the movement.

"Zack? Zack!"

Thank Gaia, blinking resumed and beneath it dawned a reassuring, though dazed, smile. Zack looked like he was waking out of a dream that had boggled his mind. He exhaled deeply and pushed back his soft black spikes. Cloud noted absently that he looked younger with his hair worn on the sides of his head like that, not that Zack ever seemed as old as he was.

"Whew, sorry about that."

"Did I say something wrong?" Cloud asked timidly.

"Gaia, no! Just...not conducive to keeping my brain unmelted. That one's too hot to handle, but I'm definitely filing it away with my other masturbatory fantasies."

"So it can't be done?" Cloud asked, disappointed.

Zack shivered a little, trying not to be distracted by the images that Cloud's innocent suggestion had conjured. "No, it can be, but regretfully, not by us, for two reasons. One, Seph or I will prepare you carefully and of course be gentle, but the first time is always uncomfortable at first. And that's just with one person."

"Did it...hurt for you?"

"Yeah, for a minute. The guy was also a bit too eager, so he kinda rushed."

Cloud's sweet face scrunched up with confusion. "Wait...Sephiroth wasn't your first?"

"Uh-uh. Second person and second time. I wish it had been only Seph," Zack said glumly.

Cloud's eyes widened, showing a bit more surprise than Zack had expected. He couldn't know that Cloud was thinking of how protective his partners were with him, how Sephiroth often asked Cloud if anyone ever bothered him, Zack's serious lecture about how Cloud should tell them immediately if anybody harassed or tried to touch him. Was there a reason for this extreme caution?

"Spiky, what's wrong?"

"Was it...bad?"

Zack studied Cloud's fearful expression and saw what he was thinking, and his mouth fell open again. "Oh, Gaia, baby, no, not like that! I was willing, it was just really dumb of me. I was in love with Seph and didn't think he'd ever love me back, so I was trying to get over him, so I did something I wasn't ready for, with someone I didn't really want. You thought...?"

Cloud shifted uncomfortably, embarrassed now that he had jumped to such a grisly conclusion. Zack patted his cheek.

"It wasn't like that. Seph was pretty hard on the guy anyway, but if I had been raped, they'd still be collecting the bodies from his psycho killing spree."

Cloud's smile was weak at first, but it grew with the knowledge that he too was now part of the protective circle of Sephiroth's love. And Zack's. Maybe it was just them being protective, after all. Zack had told Cloud once that people were constantly looking at him and most of them meant no harm, but it never hurt to be careful. He hadn't said much more, probably not wanting to make the boy afraid or paranoid.

"And we're gonna skip the second reason," Zack was going on, "because it'll make you grumpy with me."

"No it won't, just tell me."

"Well." Zack smiled playfully. "Seph's pretty big, and I'm not exactly deficient in that respect myself. We would hurt a tiny little thing like you."

As expected, Cloud pouted. "I'm not tiny."

"You're small-framed." Zack placed his hands on the blond's waist and slid them down to the hips, stroking them gently over the blue cadet uniform. "See how narrow you are here? Not much space. You're gonna be tight as it is, always."

"Is that good?" Cloud asked, in an innocent voice that contrasted with his devious smile.

"Oh, it's good."

Cloud's rose-petal lips sought his own, eagerly, Cloud's arms wrapped around his shoulders and squeezed as he was pulled closer. The thought of the upcoming occasion was driving both of them, making them desire this touching even more than usual. At last, Cloud's age would match the consent his words and actions had long wanted to give. At last, he could offer Zack and Sephiroth what he'd always intended to give to his true love.

Zack pushed the Tactics homework off Cloud's lap and reached for the boy's zipper. Sephiroth could scold them about responsibility later.

_czsczsczs_

Sephiroth moved systematically through the file of 1st Class reports, scanning them carefully and appending his signature to each as a sign he had reviewed the contents. He read and processed information quickly, he always had. Good thing that this duty was one he was used to and could do without effort; his mind was on more pleasant things. He guessed that one of those pleasant things was in the outer office, if Levine's grumbling was anything to go by.

The door to the inner office opened just slightly, and through the crack, a strange object slipped. It appeared to be a hand covered by a black sock, with googly eyes and a felt smile glued to it.

"Oh, General!" Zack called in a silly, high-pitched voice. "I have a report to make!"

"What, that my underwear drawer has been ransacked again?"

"Yes, sir, the perimeter has been breached. I failed you, sir. Many of my comrades have bravely fallen in its defense. I was taken captive by the intruder."

"Along with some of the underwear, I'm guessing?" Sephiroth asked, looking down to try to hide his smile.

"Two or three pairs. But I'm here to make it up to you, sir, if you know what I mean." The fingers manipulating the sock made it grin. "Would you like to breach _my_ perimeter?"

"Get in here, Lieutenant," Sephiroth laughed softly.

"Sock-tease."

Zack breezed into the room with a cheery smile, and plopped carelessly onto the general's desk. Sephiroth normally shooed him off, but this time merely moved some paperwork aside and slid the young SOLDIER closer over the polished wood. His hands first ran up and down over Zack's thighs, then lifted to reach for the ruined sock, which Zack held protectively.

"Give me that. At least take it off."

"I'll return it when I'm done with it. I return most of the undies, don't I?"

"What I don't understand is why you take them at all," Sephiroth said calmly. "What do you do with them?"

"I sleep with them on the nights when I'm not with you."

"You know my offer remains open."

Zack smiled brightly. "I know, and we'll get there. But I think you need your own space, and if we lived together we'd never get out of bed again."

Sephiroth had to admit that that was a possibility. He intensely disliked the mornings that followed his nights with Zack, when he had to watch the body he craved leave the warmth of his arms and walk away. He had always been good with mornings, needing very little time to wake up, but Zack made him want to stay in bed, to re-enact the events of the night over and over again.

"Besides," Zack snickered, "it's more of a challenge when I have to go all the way up there to get to your underwear."

"So what brought you down here, at a time when the drawer is vulnerable?"

"Something I heard from Cloud's c.o. He said it's a shame that the kid has been requested for an observation mission in North Corel. A dreary place, forced to stand and watch and learn, on his birthday."

"I am not really sending him to North Corel," Sephiroth said quickly.

"I didn't think so. So what's really going on?"

"Do you recall, in our conversation about Cloud's birthday, we discussed gifts?"

Zack nodded. He was all set, himself, having chosen a set of materia - Ice, Fire, Heal, Shield, Restore, Contain, Sense, Time - that Cloud could work with on his own time outside of lessons. Cloud loved magic and was excellent at it, and it was unheard of for a SOLDIER cadet to have his own materia. He could have them worked up impressively by the time he became a 3rd, although the Restore was already mastered. Because Zack wasn't at all protective, oh no. He knew Cloud would love it.

Sephiroth was in a slightly tougher position. His gifts were always amazing and expensive, but Cloud would no doubt have to explain to curious friends where he had gotten something of that kind. Though his birthday would make him legal to be involved with anyone older than himself, Sephiroth remained determined that Cloud would not have to deal with the weight of a public relationship with ShinRa's most famous names. Not while he was a cadet, at least. So what gift could avoid scrutiny and unhelpful questions?

"I have decided what to give him."

"C'mon, spill."

"Do you recall that beach house we spent a few days at a year or so ago?"

A gleeful grin spread over Zack's face. "Seriously?"

"Yes. This time, the three of us will have it for a week. As far as ShinRa and most of the commanders know, only you and I will be there. Do you think Cloud will be pleased?"

"Are you kidding? A week away from ShinRa, with just us, on a private beach in Costa del Sol? He's gonna freak!"

"And that is good?"

"As Cloud would say, _duh_."

"It's decided, then," Sephiroth said, smiling.

"If I remember correctly, that house is pretty isolated, too. Perfect in case he turns out to be a screamer."

"Has he spoken of that?"

"Don't worry, Seph, he's as eager as we are, though I did have to reassure him a little about it being his choice which of us it is." Zack sighed dreamily. "You know what he suggested?"

"No, what?"

"Let me take off my pants first," Zack said, standing to undo his belts.

"What?"

"Trust me, it'll save you the trouble of ripping 'em off."

_czsczsczs_

Cloud was nervous. Not in a scared way, more like a something's-going-on-and-I-don't-know-what-it-is way. It was the night before his birthday, and he had returned from dinner to find a message from Zack waiting for him in his dorm room. It was cryptic, which was typical of Zack, whose mind was always running in a million directions at once. '**Pack for a week-long trip. I'll come for you at ten.**' The note had been left on top of a white box. '**Open this.**'

Cloud was confused. Zack had given him his birthday gift early (for once he didn't care about the whispers of favoritism that would follow, it was worth it to have his own materia) so what could this be? He opened it to find an army trooper's uniform, complete with helmet, and instructions to put it on after his roommate was asleep.

If this was some sort of kinky role-play idea of Zack's, Cloud didn't quite get the attraction of it, but he trusted Zack. He packed quickly and hid the suitcase under his bed, and when Cadet Lindley's snores became regular and deep, he put on the army uniform. Zack's punctuality seemed to improve on special occasions; it was exactly ten o'clock that he crept soundlessly into the room and raised a finger to his grinning lips. Cloud nodded, let Zack take the suitcase and his hand and allowed himself to be led out.

It was strange to see these hallways dim and empty when they were normally bright and bustling. Cloud was going mad with curiosity and wished he could make enough noise to ask what was going on. He'd had a feeling Zack or Sephiroth would get him out of the mission he'd been dreading and had been thinking he might actually accept special treatment, for once, rather than spend a week away from them. But, clearly, something bigger was going on. Were they going to Sephiroth's apartment? Was he about to lose his...

But no, they entered Building C and boarded the elevator, but went right past Sephiroth's floor. The button that had been pressed appeared to be the one for the roof. What...? Cloud looked at Zack, unable to get his questioning expression through the helmet's visor, but Zack seemed to understand. He smiled and squeezed the boy's hand.

"It's okay, baby. It's a surprise."

Cloud was certainly surprised when they stepped out into the windy night and began to head for a sleek black helicopter that awaited them. As they approached, the blades of the propeller began to whir, and the door slid open. The noises startled Cloud, to his embarrassment, and he jumped. Seeing this, Zack climbed into the intimidating vehicle first and offered a hand down. Cloud took it, and found himself suddenly in a quiet, warm compartment, and his anxiety vanished at the sound of a familiar voice.

"Zack, you did get the right one, didn't you?"

"I think so." The helmet was lifted off, and Zack grinned. "Yep. Happy Almost Birthday, baby."

Cloud accepted the hug he was pulled into. "Thank you."

He turned as he was released, looking for the owner of the voice, and there was Sephiroth. He beamed, thrilled to see him for the first time in a week, and was rewarded with a soft, loving gaze. Zack was talkative, giving and demanding a constant flow of words, but that was rarely necessary with Sephiroth, who - like Cloud - was naturally quiet. The two of them could have whole conversations only with their eyes.

Zack had plopped down opposite the general after signaling the pilot to take off. Cloud glanced back and forth between them, feeling again the burden of choosing between two people he loved equally. It was just Cloud's way to worry about hurting the feelings of others, he tended to feel such things even more acutely than the ones being hurt.

"Sit with Seph," Zack said mercifully. "He hasn't seen ya for awhile."

There was something hopeful and almost shy about the way Sephiroth opened his arms, and it drew Cloud to him with an eagerness the boy didn't often show. It felt so right, so normal, to sit on the general's lap and snuggle against his chest, to let that glorious hair fall around him like a curtain.

"I missed you," Cloud murmured, as he pressed his face to that flawless white skin.

"And I you." Sephiroth's arms were around him, his fingers massaging.

"Where're we going?"

"You will see." The answer was light and teasing, a side of Sephiroth he would have once thought inconceivable. "Sleep. I will wake you when we arrive."

"Sleep?" He _was_ tired, but Cloud didn't want to miss a moment of this closeness, this intoxicating scent.

"We have all week. Time for everything. Sleep now."

Even if he had planned to protest, Sephiroth's voice was too soothing, almost hypnotic. Cloud's blond head was drawn gently to a leather-covered shoulder, the body cradling him slowly rocked, and he drifted off. His last waking thought was _Please don't let this be a dream._

_czsczsczs_

Even before his eyes opened, when he was still caught between the world and the quiet of sleep, Cloud sensed he was being carried. It was lighter, he could see the change through his eyelids, but it was still the same body holding him. He pressed his nose to it, breathing in, and Sephiroth's quiet laugh came from above.

"Do not look until I tell you to do so."

Cloud answered with a contented sigh. His curiosity could wait. It was only a few moments, though, before he was being gently let down and steadied on his feet, and the voice was telling him to open his eyes.

As Cloud obeyed, he realized why the ground beneath his boots felt soft, why the sun was so warm, what the clean, salty smell beyond Sephiroth's scent was. This was a beach of pristine golden sand, uninhabited except for them. Just over there, so close by, was the sea, blue-green like Zack's eyes when strong emotion brought mako into their paleness. And he and Sephiroth were a few steps from a large house built right on the sand, with balconies all around the upper floor and a large deck surrounding the lower. Within the enclosing fence there even appeared to be a well-tended garden, and a hot tub nearby.

"Are we...staying _here_?" Cloud whispered, amazed by the luxury of the place and the beauty of the scenery.

Sephiroth's arm wrapped around his shoulders. "Yes, this is our home for the week. For your birthday. Do you like it?"

"Are you kidding?" Cloud grabbed Sephiroth around the middle and hugged him. "This is unbelievable. Thank you."

Zack bounced through the front door and down the steps, having gone ahead to take their bags inside. Cloud laughed as Zack picked him up and spun him around, rather than protesting as he would usually do.

"Spiky! Awesome place, isn't it?"

"Amazing. Have you been here before?"

"Yeah, Seph and I came here once, a few months after we got together." No wonder Zack looked so happy to be here. "C'mon, we'll show you around."

The interior of the beach house was every bit as impressive, exquisitely and comfortably furnished in neutral colors. The dining room was illuminated by a chandelier that was definitely an antique. The library was bordered all around with shelves of handsomely-bound, first-edition books. (Cloud guessed that Sephiroth must especially like that room.) The fully-stocked kitchen was light and airy, with sunlight pouring through the windows and drenching the marble floor and countertops.

The living room was dominated by cushy couches facing a large TV. Zack drifted over to the cozy brick fireplace with a beaming smile and patted an area of wall beside it. The others joined him there, and Sephiroth laughed softly and brought Zack close to him for a lingering kiss. Apparently this spot had a special meaning for them.

"This is the first place where we fucked here," Zack explained. The word never sounded vulgar when he used it. "We were having wine by the fire, and next thing I knew, my feet were up there and I thought I was in heaven. I'm still not sure how we got that angle to work."

"As I recall it," Sephiroth said thoughtfully, "I am flexible, and you were drunk."

"Yeah, that would explain it."

For Zack, the tour of the rest of the ground floor focused mainly on his amazing recollection of every intimate act he and Sephiroth had performed in each spot. Sephiroth smiled and shook his head and Cloud blushed and laughed as Zack pointed out the location of every blowjob, handjob, penetration, etc. He once used a word Cloud didn't know, "rimming", and obligingly explained, in a way that was typically Zack. ("Tab B," he said, pointing to his tongue, "into Slot C," he finished, indicating his behind.)

Sephiroth mercifully took over the tour as they stepped out the sliding glass door onto the patio. The hot tub was shown without comment from Zack (he merely smiled dreamily at it) and Sephiroth led Cloud down into the thick green grass of the garden. Flowers of all shapes and colors were nestled in beds, blossoming from bushes, creeping over trellises and the fence. Cloud observed the idyllic scene with open-mouthed wonder, scarcely hearing as Sephiroth gave the complex-sounding names of some of the species.

It was quiet then, too quiet, and at the same time they looked for Zack. He was standing in front of the garden's sole tree, a young apple sapling that was nearly his own height. Cloud was about to call to him when he saw, shocked, Zack shudder suddenly and hide his face in one hand. Sephiroth was at his side in an instant, stroking his hair, cupping his cheeks, speaking softly to him. Zack mouthed what looked like assurances that he was all right, and offered a dimmer version of his usual smile. Sephiroth didn't seem convinced right away, and it was only after kissing him and brushing away a tear and seeing Zack's smile grow bright again that he nodded and let him go.

"Hey, Spiky!" Zack called. "Race ya upstairs! You still gotta see the bedrooms!"

As soon as Zack had bounded off, Cloud hurried to the patio steps where Sephiroth was waiting. "Is he okay?"

"He's fine," Sephiroth said confidently. "You will probably not see him that way again this week, but if you do, don't worry. Zack is all right."

"What happened? He looked so sad by that tree."

"Angeal was very fond of gardening," the general said softly. "Zack loves trees and flowers for that reason, I believe, but they also bring up the memory of loss for him."

Cloud nodded. He didn't know much about Angeal, only that he'd been a famous SOLDIER, Sephiroth's best friend and Zack's mentor, and that he'd been killed before Cloud had come to ShinRa. He knew Angeal was the reason the older 1sts treated Zack like a younger brother and occasionally called him "the puppy". He was curious, but he didn't want to ask Sephiroth or Zack about something so painful. He followed Sephiroth back into the house, and to the top of the stairs where Zack was waiting.

The upper floor had a master bedroom and two others, each with its own bathroom. As Zack led the way into the master bedroom, he explained that this was where they would all be sleeping -

"If Cloud wants to," Sephiroth reminded him.

"Cloud wants to," the blond said with a smile.

- but he and Cloud also each had their own rooms, for storing their belongings or if they wanted time alone. Sephiroth had completely redecorated all three for their trip, and this one was like a dream of paradise, all white and silver. The general saw Cloud's surprise at the choice and admitted that he was very fond of white.

"Why do you wear black, then?" It couldn't be for fear of stains, Sephiroth seemed incapable of getting dirty.

He smiled. "I wouldn't look very menacing in white, would I?"

The next was Zack's room, and Cloud laughed as they entered. Purple, the rich, deep shade that there were so many touches of in his apartment back home. Zack only grinned at the boy's reaction; he was aware that the color was considered an odd favorite for a man and seemed to love it all the more for that, out of stubbornness. His bags had been carelessly tossed onto the carpet, but the stuffed animals he was attached to were placed carefully on the bed, occupying the same place of honor as they did at ShinRa. One was an extremely battered black dog, the other a smiling yellow Moogle that was older but in better shape. Yet another thing Cloud loved about Zack - he, a twenty-year-old 1st Class, would never think to hide or excuse the presence of his beloved toys.

Cloud wasn't sure what to expect when they opened the door to the last bedroom, his, but his mouth dropped open as they stepped inside. It was beautiful and richly furnished like the others, with a sinfully thick, soft carpet and a view of the nearby sea that sent a cool breeze to billow the sheer curtains. Most amazing, though, was the dominant color, a pure, perfect sky-blue, the color of peace that Cloud knew so well from seeing in mirrors. He liked the color, but more than that, just the idea that anyone paid enough attention to his eyes to know it by heart, to fill a room with it...Cloud felt the loving presence of Sephiroth and Zack behind him, and trembled as his eyes began to leak overwhelmed tears.

"Cloud?" Sephiroth stepped in front of him and gently brushed at the warm wetness of his skin. "What is it?"

"You...love me?" the boy said, not meaning it to be a question but making it one. "_You_...both...love _me_."

"Yes, we do." Sephiroth was alarmed by this, and by the distressed noise Cloud made as he embraced him. "Are you all right?"

"_Me_," Cloud repeated, sounding dumbfounded.

Fortunately, as was so often the case, Zack understood and knew what to do. He hugged the cadet from behind and said lightly, "No doubting, Spiky, and no thinking you're not worthy. Would Seph or I ever love someone who didn't deserve us? Have a little more faith in our taste, baby, and accept how unbelievable you are or I'll kick your butt."

Cloud laughed softly and his eyes began to clear, to Sephiroth's relief. "Sorry. It's just..."

"A lot." Zack nodded. "I've been there. Sometimes I still wonder if this is a dream and I'll wake up a lovesick 3rd again."

"Generals may suffer similar ailments," Sephiroth said with a gentle smile.

"This is amazing," Cloud said to him. "I don't know what to say."

"You need say nothing."

Zack bounced over to the closet, which puzzled Cloud, because he hadn't put anything in there yet. "Just in case you're not yet convinced that we're obsessed with your eyes..."

He opened the door to reveal a space which was, in fact, not quite empty. Several pairs of new silk pajamas were hanging there, all in the same shade of sky-blue.

"So we'll match, kind of," Zack explained. "Seph's are black, mine are purple."

"Thank you," Cloud whispered again, wondering how many times he would utter that phrase during the next week. Each time, the true and deepest meaning behind the phrase would be clear to Sephiroth and Zack - thank you for seeing something lovable in me that I could never see for myself.

_cszcszcsz_

Zack, always ridiculously energetic even in the morning hours, decided that their first order of business was breakfast. In the airy kitchen he made use of his love of cooking and whipped up waffles served with whipped cream and fresh fruit, while Sephiroth and Cloud - forbidden to help - talked about classes and recent SOLDIER business. In talking excitedly about his new materia and his eagerness to use it, Cloud saw a chance to bring up something he'd wanted to for months.

"What's the deal with Instructor Zane?"

Sephiroth frowned. "Has he said or done something?"

"Oh, no, he's just so..."

"Zany," Zack finished. "Maybe insanity is the price he paid for being so damn good at magic. Or maybe it's all that time spent with chocobos."

"He seems kind of obsessed with them."

"Heh, that ain't the half of it. Don't repeat this, especially not to the other cadets, but - "

"_Zack_," Sephiroth said in a warning tone, "I hardly think that's appropriate for Cloud to hear."

"_Seph_, you're infantilizing again. It's okay."

"Very well."

"Thank you. Zane's a little _too_ fond of chocobos, if you get what I mean."

"I'm not sure I do," Cloud admitted.

"Let me put it this way - he's not allowed in the stables."

"You mean..." A look of disgust came over Cloud's face. "That's gross!"

"He is dealing with this problem," Sephiroth assured them. "Zane has regular therapy and avoids triggers."

"Unless your hair is a trigger, Spiky," Zack laughed. Sephiroth swatted at him playfully, and he ducked with 1st Class reflexes.

Cloud watched them with the tiniest bit of envy. Zack was Zack, no matter who he was with, but before meeting Sephiroth, he couldn't imagine that the general was ever so relaxed as he was with Zack. With Cloud, Sephiroth was loving, but still careful, as though he were handling something fragile. Cloud loved this softness, but he wondered if what they had would ever become the easy familiarity those two shared. It was probably silly to be worrying about this only months into the relationship.

A pale hand gently touched Cloud's. "You seem lost in thought."

"I was wondering...were you two always like this?"

"Like what?"

"Comfortable like this."

Zack managed to swallow a spoonful of fruit before he started laughing. "Are you kidding? We had no idea what the hell we were doing. Every time something new happened - holding hands, spending the night, saying 'I love you' - I always worried it would be inappropriate or too soon or whatever..."

"I wish you had told me you felt that way," Sephiroth said. "At the time, you seemed so much more confident than I."

"It was mostly bravado," Zack admitted sheepishly. He looked at Cloud and smiled. "Few people have ever been brave or dumb enough to chase after Seph as much as I did. I was the first to get him. No pressure, right?"

"Zack was your first..."

"Relationship," the general finished quickly. "Yes. I didn't really know what I was doing or what other relationships were like."

"Then I convinced him to stop analyzing and go by feeling," Zack said, "which worked. For ten minutes, then I'd have to remind him. I should just stitch it into a pillow or something."

"Well, I had to be careful. If I had made a mistake with you, I would have had to avoid high places," Sephiroth said carefully.

Zack smiled wistfully, to his relief, and he mirrored the expression. Cloud looked confused.

"I don't get it."

"When Angeal was alive," Zack said steadily, keeping his voice light, "people who upset me tended to get pushed from great heights. He was a little overprotective."

"Because he loved you," Sephiroth said gently.

"I know. I still don't know why he bothered with me to begin with. Don't look so nervous, Spiky. I'm okay talking about Angeal."

"Were you and he - " Cloud blurted, without thinking.

Zack rolled his eyes, but laughed. "Too many people thought so. No, Angeal was more parental than anything. Or any_one_, including my own parents."

"Was he okay with the two of you...you know..."

"I think it was a little awkward for him at first, his student and his best friend together. But he was good about it. All he cared about was that we were happy."

"And that he not hear too many details," Sephiroth said thoughtfully.

Zack's eyes went wide. "You tried to give him _details_?"

"I merely commented on your stamina and focus. I thought he would be pleased to know this, but he covered his ears and threatened to throw himself on the Buster Sword."

Zack groaned through his hands. "Be glad you didn't come along any earlier than you did, Spiky. That could've been you."

"Your sword?" Cloud asked. "The same one?"

"Uh-huh. Angeal left the Buster to me, and me to Sephiroth."

"General's privilege," Sephiroth said with a smirk. "I always get the best prize."

_The rest will be along soon! Please let me know what you think!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you for all the reviews! I won't make you guys wait a moment longer, so here goes..._

**INDULGENCE, PART TWO**

Like a kid, Zack wanted to immediately sprint outside after breakfast, and like a grown-up, Sephiroth wouldn't let them until they had put on sunscreen. When Zack protested that his mako level was high enough, the general said, "Better safe than sorry. Do you want to risk getting burned and not being able to stand touch?" That made Zack promptly shut up and obey.

"Mako prevents sunburn?" Cloud asked.

"At high levels. That's why His Royal Paleness here doesn't need the sunscreen."

When Sephiroth finally let them go, Zack jumped out the back door, onto the fence, and launched into the air, turning a somersault before landing easily onto the sand.

"Show-off," Cloud yelled as he and Sephiroth followed by a more conventional route, through the garden gate.

"Ever build a sandcastle, Spiky?"

"No."

"It's fun! Last time we were here, I showed Seph how, and the jerk completely showed me up. He did the Great Temple of Wutai from memory, with columns and paper lanterns, and even carvings on the walls, I still don't know how he did that. I wish I'd gotten a picture of it, but it got knocked down."

"By you?" Cloud guessed dryly.

"Hey, it wasn't my fault, he jumped on me!"

"It _was_ your fault, you took your shorts off."

"Oh, so if I dress provocatively, it's okay to jump me?" Zack said in a mock-indignant voice.

"You took them off _and_ threw them at me."

Cloud laughed longer and harder at this than Sephiroth had ever seen him do. The general thought it was a lovely sound, and an even lovelier sight.

"To prevent such misunderstandings from recurring," he began, "perhaps this time I shall help you both rather than compete with you?"

Cloud beamed. "What should we make?"

"It will have to be a place we all know."

The only choice they could come up with was ShinRa Headquarters, the grounds with fields all around and tall buildings surrounding courtyards. Sephiroth began to flatten an area of sand for them to work on while Cloud and Zack went down to the shoreline to get buckets of water and mud. Cloud stared in awe at the vast expanse of blue set before them. He had grown up with streams and ponds in Nibelheim, and those were often frozen anyway. This was like nothing he'd ever seen.

"Amazing, isn't it?" Zack sighed. "You know what all this blue reminds me of?"

Cloud smiled shyly. "My eyes?"

"Yep. But then, dryer lint and grape jelly remind me of your eyes too."

Cloud laughed. "Now grape jelly will always remind me of you."

"Because it's purple or 'cause it tastes good?"

"Because it wiggles a lot," Cloud teased, and ran back toward Sephiroth with the pail of mud.

"Hey!"

Zack chased him, trying not to let the water spill, and caught up just in time to tackle the boy and pin him on the sand, disturbing part of the section that Sephiroth had meticulously flattened. Zack tickled and Cloud giggled hysterically, trying to draw breath to beg for mercy. Tears of mirth trickled down his cheeks and he managed to lightly knee his tormentor in the stomach...and then, quick as it had started, it was over. Sephiroth had gently but hastily lifted Zack off of him and was looking closely at his face.

"Seph, you can't interrupt tickling. It's, like, a rule."

"He is crying," Sephiroth pointed out, intending that to be his explanation.

Cloud wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "I'm okay. It's just because I was laughing so hard."

"Laughing induces tears?" Sephiroth was intrigued. He'd seen Zack laugh long and hard and wipe his face afterward, but he hadn't thought this was an experience common to everyone.

"Oh, yeah," Zack agreed. "I was just about to stop, you know. I wouldn't hurt him."

"I know."

"I don't mind tickling so much," Cloud said, "as long as it's not for long. Are you ticklish, Sephiroth?"

"I am not."

"Nowhere?"

"No. Zack was very disappointed."

"Actually, there's one place I still haven't checked."

"Nor will you, Zackary."

"Ugh, don't call me that!"

Sephiroth, whose strategic skill had been nurtured since childhood and honed over years of battle plans, plotted out the ShinRa Compound before them, using a stick to trace the enclosing wall, the outline of the buildings, the variously-sized squares of the courtyards. Sephiroth knew every nook and cranny of the place, every door, every bench. Cloud was impressed, and told him so.

Sephiroth shrugged, a learned gesture that never looked quite natural on him. "I grew up there. Until the Wutai War, it was all I knew."

It made Cloud sad to be reminded that Sephiroth had had such an unusual and isolated upbringing. His own childhood had not been especially happy, being bullied or ignored by the kids of Nibelheim, but rumors said Sephiroth had not even had parents. Again, Cloud wanted to know more, and again, he didn't want to bring up anything painful.

Zack was watching him thoughtfully. "Uh, Seph, why don't you start making and setting the bases of the buildings? Cloudy and I'll take a quick look around for stuff we can use to decorate."

Sephiroth nodded and began shaping the thick, wet sand into cubes with his skilled fingers. Zack led Cloud a good distance away and down to the water, where the wind was stronger and louder.

"You got that curious look on your face again, Spiky."

"I was thinking of how much I don't know about Sephiroth."

"Well." Zack ruffled his dark hair in thought. "We don't know who his parents were. He was raised by Hojo, within ShinRa, given mako earlier than usual, I don't know how much earlier. Angeal and Genesis came to ShinRa when he was around twelve. He doesn't really talk about life before that."

"Genesis?"

"They were the three youngest SOLDIERs. And best friends. What Angeal told me is that they were given a new, stronger, experimental solution of mako. Angeal and Seph tolerated it. Genesis didn't. He began to deteriorate, and went crazy, and they had to lock him up. I think Seph was around fourteen when he died."

"That's terrible."

"Yeah. If I hadn't had Angeal to tie me to ShinRa, and now Seph and you, I'm not sure I could've worked for the company this long. No, scratch that. I _know_ I couldn't have."

"If Hojo is so awful, why doesn't Sephiroth kill him?"

Zack smiled weakly. "I've asked that myself. He's got a reason, I think, but he won't give it up."

Cloud looked back to where Sephiroth was painstakingly molding the tall buildings that dominated the skyline over Midgar, and laughed softly. "I never expected to see the great Sephiroth playing in the sand."

"He's amazing, isn't he?"

"Yeah. So are you."

"Well, that makes three of us then, doesn't it?" Zack put an arm around the boy's shoulder and walked him back. "We couldn't find anything, Seph."

"It's just as well. The Compound's exterior does not require much decoration."

"Hey..." There was a mischievous gleam in Zack's eyes. "If Spiky's willing to give up some of his spikes, we can make chocobos for the stables!"

"You are _not_ pulling out my hair!"

"Nah, I like it too much, I wouldn't do that. Or would I?"

Zack threw himself on top of Cloud. This time, the blond wasn't rendered helpless by tickling, so he was able to resist when Zack tried to pin him. Cloud was smaller and weaker, but he was stubborn.

"Shift more weight onto your legs," Zack instructed. "If you slide you'll lose your grip on me."

"You're...too...strong!"

"Or you could always surrender."

Sephiroth watched them struggle for a few minutes more. Cloud was shoving Zack off, bit by bit, but the effort was clearly exhausting him. Much as he admired the boy's determination, the general didn't like to see him so frustrated. He gently grabbed Zack by the scruff of the neck (the 1sts had called this 'the puppy-grip' when Angeal did it) and pulled him off.

"That's enough, he'll cramp."

"I'm okay," Cloud insisted, wishing he had got to finish but not even thinking of being annoyed. "Really."

"You're getting stronger," Zack said with approval. "And don't mind Seph, it's just a phase. He was all uber-careful with me too at first, like he was worried he'd break me and have to explain that to Angeal."

"Angeal knew of a lot of high places," Sephiroth said lightly, but truthfully, he had been afraid of breaking Zack, just as he was now a little afraid of shattering Cloud.

He had had a difficult time in his youth, not knowing his own strength. Of course, logically that meant he must not be a very good judge of _other_ people's strength. Zack turned out to be much tougher than Sephiroth had expected of Angeal's slightly-spoiled puppy. Perhaps Cloud would continue to surprise him too.

_cszcszcsz_

After lunch, the trio returned outside to photograph the sand-compound and go swimming. There were very few things Sephiroth did not excel at, and Zack flitted around as easily as a fish, but Cloud was nervous as he waded into the water that had warmed to a delightful coolness under the afternoon sun. Therefore the three of them stuck to the shallows and taught Cloud a few of the simpler strokes. He picked it up quickly, but there was no rush to go any deeper, they were having fun right where they were.

Zack seemed to like Sephiroth's swimming trunks as much as he did his underwear, and made several courageous but foolish attempts to steal them. In response, Sephiroth would dunk him or toss a handful of seaweed at him. When Zack got bored with this, he made a game of ducking beneath the surface and emerging directly in front of or behind Cloud, causing the boy to emit a startled shriek.

"_Zack_!"

"Come over here, Cloud," Sephiroth said with a smile. "I'll protect you."

Cloud started in that direction, but Zack gleefully seized him around the waist. "Ha ha, he's mine! You want him, you gotta trade!"

"You'd trade me for an article of clothing?"

"Only one that's touched those specific parts."

Smirking, Sephiroth bent over, put his hands beneath the water, and straightened up with the wet black trunks in his hand. He balled them up and tossed them to Zack, who let go of Cloud to catch them.

As the spiky-haired 1st shouted in triumph, Sephiroth and Cloud met each other halfway. Cloud felt heat ripple through his entire body to feel Sephiroth against him, completely nude, smooth skin made slippery by the water. Zack paddled up to them, looked probingly at the boy's face, and grinned.

"Let's go in," he said abruptly. "I go nuts if I've got salt water on me for too long."

They separated to shower and change, then Zack met Sephiroth and Cloud in the hallway and told them that the downstairs was off-limits for a while. He wouldn't say why, and it couldn't be so he could cook, as they had already placed an order for delivery from the Wutainese place down the street. But it was useless arguing with Zack, who headed downstairs with a wink and told them to entertain themselves for awhile. Besides, Cloud had a feeling that Zack knew what was going to happen, maybe even before he did himself.

Cloud followed Sephiroth into the master bedroom and boldly closed the door behind them. Sephiroth took the blond's face gently in his hands and kissed him, and Cloud felt himself becoming more courageous. Or maybe it was more aroused, or more in love, or all three. Whatever it was, he had made up his mind. Zack's earlier smile and wink had reassured him, and he knew he wanted this.

Sephiroth looked as casual as the boy had ever seen him, having donned a simple white T-shirt and soft black pants. Gulping silently, Cloud grasped the hem of the shirt and lifted it, shivering at the sight of the toned stomach and chest it revealed. Sephiroth pulled the garment all the way off and tossed it to the floor, looking at Cloud carefully, trying to see what he was thinking. The boy seemed both apprehensive and determined.

The smaller hands went to the waistband of the black pants next. The general anticipated what Cloud wanted and slipped them off, leaving himself completely bare. Cloud looked him up and down in a daze, cheeks pink, rosy lips slightly parted. Sephiroth tilted his face up and smiled at the boy's struggle between want and timidity.

"Shy still?" he whispered kindly.

"Zack never was, was he?"

"He was a bit...nervous perhaps, at first. He got over it quite fast."

"And you've been locking your underwear drawer ever since."

"Yes," Sephiroth said with a laugh.

"I never...I mean, I used to dream about you, and this, but that was before I knew who you really are." Cloud winced; this was not coming out the way he'd hoped it would. "I want you to know that you're still my hero, but you're...more. I'm not just...it's not just...I'm not making sense, am I?"

"You are. I never counted you as just another member of my fan club, Cloud. You, too, have always been more."

The blond put one hand on Sephiroth's arm, and twined his other fingers into the waterfall of silver hair. "I want...I want you."

Sephiroth knew how much it must have taken for Cloud to get that out. He resolved to ask only once.

"Are you certain?"

"I have been for a long time."

Sephiroth put his arms around Cloud and lifted him slightly for a long kiss. When he let him down again, the sky-blue eyes beamed certainty up at him. Continuing to monitor Cloud's expression anyway, the general slowly stripped the casual clothes off and tossed them aside, until Cloud stood there naked, in all his innocent glory. His was a purity that would last, would always be with him. Realizing this, Sephiroth's last worries about taking it away faded.

Cloud giggled briefly - half-nervous, half-elated - as he was picked up and carried to the huge bed. The silk beneath him felt just like the skin and hair above him, like he was completely enveloped by Sephiroth. Cloud reached for him, tried to pull him down, unwilling to wait.

"Slowly, Cloud. The first time should be slow." The general pushed aside an old resentment, that Zack's first time should have been...and it was stolen by that damned...but no. Not here, not now.

Sephiroth reached into a bedside drawer for the lubricant - better to have it ready than have to disrupt what was next. He put the bottle close by on the mattress, and put his hand between Cloud's legs, which spread for him. The boy was hard and needy, groaning with relief as he was cupped, clasped, gently stroked.

"Ohhh..."

Cloud's instinct was to shut his eyes, but he couldn't give up the sight of Sephiroth's face, relaxed with pleasure, enjoying this just as he was. The smiling lips descended to kiss him, for what felt like hours. All the while, the skilled white hand pumped him and Cloud rode it, thrusting up into the enclosure of palm and fingers.

"Please..."

More pressure, a little faster. Cloud's arms shook, but he kept his hold around Sephiroth's neck. The heat they were generating flamed to white-hot in his stomach, and he cried out into Sephiroth's mouth. The hand continued to stroke as it was drenched, as the organ deflated and returned to rest. Then Sephiroth sat up and licked his fingers clean, while Cloud watched with fascination.

He saw Sephiroth grab the lubricant and realized what was next, the thing he had been waiting for. The finger that entered first was only a herald of what was to come, there to slick and stretch and maybe tease a bit. As the second joined it, Cloud found himself so eager that he was quivering with need. They swiped the prostate together, and Cloud arched up, driving them further.

"Seph..."

He could only get the first syllable out through the heavy breaths he was panting. Sephiroth smiled, and realized he should tell Cloud he could use that nickname. Under other circumstances, the boy was not likely to without permission.

Three fingers. As expected, the boy was tight, but not unnaturally so, and Sephiroth had not expected him to be so relaxed or so insistent. Even as Cloud groaned his impatience, the passage he was navigating let him in with little difficulty. Cloud, timid by nature, was so certain...how could Sephiroth be any less so?

He had used a generous amount of lubricant. When he lifted Cloud's legs up and spread the round white cheeks, the pink entrance glistened. Sephiroth looked into the blue eyes, asking permission one last time, and the smile that answered held no fear at all. He lined himself up and began to ease in, gently, encouraged when Cloud threw his head back and moaned. The sweet face occasionally scrunched up, either in pain or concentration, but each time Sephiroth stopped altogether, Cloud became restless and tried to pull him deeper.

Cloud felt it when he was filled to the hilt, realizing that, already, the pleasure of Sephiroth inside vastly outweighed the stretched sort of pain. The first thrust was like electricity, the ones that followed even less describable. Though he had been spent minutes earlier, Cloud hardened again as Sephiroth established their rhythm. The speed was maddeningly slow, but if that meant it would last longer, Cloud was all for it. He began to thrust up to meet Sephiroth, realizing that he could control the depth and angle better this way, and the pressure of the general's stomach rubbing against him added to the perfection of this.

Through breaths that were growing increasingly louder and faster, they smiled at each other. A single tear emerged from Cloud's eye and trickled down his cheek, but Sephiroth was not alarmed this time. Zack had cried a little too the first time, and had assured him it wasn't from any kind of pain.

He wanted to prolong this as much as possible, but Cloud was close to the edge, pulling at him, squeezing his shoulders. It was time. A single stroke, and Cloud cried out louder than Sephiroth had ever heard from him. The inner muscles that had been so relaxed spasmed and tightened, and Sephiroth came while the boy was still spurting. The last few gentle thrusts drained him completely, and he pulled out while Cloud was boneless and grinning dreamily, laying on his side and drawing the blond closer.

"How do you feel?"

Cloud seemed literally speechless, but happy, so it was okay. He shifted to kiss Sephiroth, to run a hand up his arm and into his hair.

"Any pain?"

Cloud shook his head. He was a little sore, but he didn't want this feeling banished by a Cure or a Potion. It wasn't bad, and it was proof that this had actually happened.

"Please say something," Sephiroth said with a smile.

"That was even better than I imagined."

"And did you imagine it many times?"

Shyly, Cloud nodded. "Was I okay?"

"More than okay. Perfect."

The blond snuggled against Sephiroth, who held him tightly and indugled in his fondness for combing his fingers through the spiky hair. They lay like that for a long time in a comfortable silence, communicating only through presence and gentle touching. After a while, the general thought Cloud must be asleep, his breathing was so calm and regular. But when Zack's voice broke the quiet, telling them they could come down now, Cloud looked up immediately and laughed softly.

"Will he be annoyed he missed this?"

"Only, I think, that he didn't get to record it. I confiscated his camera, just to be safe."

They quickly got cleaned up and dressed, and Cloud was careful not to wince as he descended the staircase and was met by Zack's knowing grin.

"You're glowing," he whispered. "Was it mind-blowing or what?"

"Mind-blowing."

"And you told him it didn't hurt, didn't you?" Zack guessed. "Be careful. Just because he's not armed doesn't mean he's not hiding Restore materia somewhere. I speak from experience."

"I'm fine, really."

"Yeah, until I make you sit down."

Zack grabbed Cloud's and Sephiroth's hands and pulled them toward the kitchen. There on the table was the answer to Zack's mysterious takeover of the ground floor - a beautiful homemade cake with sky-blue frosting and 'Happy Birthday, Cloud' written on it in silver and purple.

"Wow! You _made_ this?"

"I'm just that talented."

"Cake is supposed to come _after_ dinner, Zackary," Sephiroth admonished lightly, and the lieutenant stuck out his tongue in reply.

"You can light the candles, Seph. And not with magic, or you might burn the whole place down."

Cloud sat down (wincing while the general wasn't looking) and Zack poured a glass of wine and passed it to him. SOLDIER's unofficial drinking age was sixteen, so Cloud took a few sips and decided he liked it. But...

"Uh, how strong is this stuff?"

"Not very," Sephiroth answered as he lit the last candle.

"Why?" Zack snickered. "Does your bottom feel mysteriously better?"

"What did you do?"

"Nothing! Except mix in a little Potion."

"Zack!"

"Hey, if I hadn't done it, he would've!"

"He has a point," Sephiroth said as he slid the cake nearer to Cloud. "Make a wish."

He couldn't think of anything more he wanted, except that the three of them would always be together, and happy like this.

_cszcszcsz_

After a long evening of cake and wine and Wutainese food in their pajamas in front of a cozy fire, Cloud wondered if a day could possibly be more perfect. Zack and Sephiroth had been making him laugh with amusing stories from their pasts, both separate and shared. Zack's eyes, several times, crept fondly back to the section of wall he had patted that morning, and he said he thought it was the same kind of wine they were drinking now.

"I have fond memories of that night too," Sephiroth explained.

"Seriously, we should put plaques around the house commemorating these momentous events. One for you and me there, one for you and Spiky in the bedroom..."

Sephiroth smiled secretively. They could actually do that if Zack really wanted to, and tomorrow he would tell them why. The house's owner had at last agreed to sell, convinced by Sephiroth's generous offer, and it now belonged to the three of them. This retreat would no doubt serve as the setting for many more good memories to come.

"Where will the plaque for you and I be?" Cloud bravely asked Zack, smiling slyly.

Zack grinned back. "Potion or no, I want you to have a little more recovery time. But don't worry, we'll pick a memorable place. Besides, no one wants to immediately follow Sephiroth. You'd be disappointed."

"Don't listen to him," the general said. "He's very good."

"You probably told Angeal that too, didn't you?" Zack joked.

"Just once or twice."

Zack's mouth fell open. "_What_?"

"I am kidding."

The spiky-haired SOLDIER laughed and shook his head. "Wow. We'll need another plaque for that."

Sephiroth smirked and turned to Cloud. "You heard Zack, you will have to wait a bit for your second time. But if there's anything else you want tonight, you have only to name it."

"Except for topping Sephiroth," Zack added. "He's a stubborn dick about that."

"Well, there's one thing..."

"Ooh, is it kinky? Does it involve animal costumes?"

"I thought you objected to such things, Zackary."

"Only when Angeal's involved. C'mon, Spiky, spill."

"I don't know if it would be okay with you..."

"We are all together here, in this," Sephiroth reminded him. "You will not offend or upset us, no matter what it is."

"Could I maybe..." Cloud said hesitantly, "watch the two of you? See how you are...together?"

"You mean - " Zack nodded approvingly. "I like this side of you, Spiky."

Sephiroth stood and offered a hand to each. "I believe, then, that we should return to the bedroom."

_cszcszcsz_

For Cloud, who was so used to Zack as a caretaker and protecter, it was new and fascinating to see him behaving so submissively, obediently laying back as Sephiroth stretched him out on the bed. The same lingering, possessive touches that Cloud had known were now being performed on Zack's body, which writhed a little. It was such an erotic sight that Cloud's mouth fell open. Zack was a more sexual being than anyone could guess if they knew him only as a goofy, cheery SOLDIER.

Sephiroth's hand grasped the younger's chin and firmly held it, staring down into the pale blue eyes with a hungry expression. It made Cloud think of a pack animal establishing dominance.

"Mine," Sephiroth growled softly, with a predatory smile.

"Yours."

Zack spread his legs a little more and the general caught them, lifting them to wrap around his own waist. Sephiroth looked at Cloud and nodded toward the nightstand. The blond brought him the lubricant and quickly returned to his seat, not wanting to miss a second of this.

Sephiroth didn't open the bottle right away. First he ran his hands up and down over Zack's hard, flat torso, kneading the flesh like bread dough. Zack groaned as the palms chafed his nipples, tilting his head back, and shuddering as a mouth latched onto his neck. Sephiroth would not mark him, he'd always thought it sacrilege to mar such lovely skin, but lips and tongue were tracing and sucking gently on every sensitive spot. He knew _all_ the sensitive spots.

"Seph," the young man groaned, putting his arms around the hovering body and trying to draw it closer. "Please..."

A slick finger entered at last, teasing, circling but not hitting the target. Zack tried to thrust upward, but a hand held his hip, massaging it and keeping it still.

"Please what?"

"Fill me, fuck me..." A groan of pleasure and relief; the finger had found its mark. Another joined it, and Zack's head fell from side to side in a daze, like a dreamer's. "Gaia Gaia just do it - "

Sephiroth was tempted - not for the first time - to enter abruptly and fast, hold back nothing, take Zack hard and make him scream. He forced himself to be more careful than this, however, because no amount of pleasure for either of them was worth a single cry of genuine pain from Zack's sweet mouth. But Zack was relaxed and eager, slick from his lubricated fingers, and not the inexperienced boy he had been their first time.

Sephiroth lined himself up, ready to enter. "Look at Cloud," he ordered softly. He tilted Zack's head himself, fingerpads lingering on the smooth cheeks for a few moments. "Watch his face, Cloud."

Zack smiled dreamily at him and Cloud smiled back, though his mouth felt dry and his chest heavy from forgetting how to breathe. The boy had known nothing of actual sex until only hours earlier, and though he had tried to imagine Sephiroth and Zack together like this before, his fantasies had not done the real thing justice. Cloud unconsciously licked his lips, wishing they were Zack's.

Sephiroth entered in one smooth, practiced thrust, meeting the prostate with just the right amount of urgency and pressure. Zack's face went slack and the eyes rolled into white, the lips parted in a wordless cry. Sephiroth pushed his long hair back so it wouldn't hide Zack from Cloud's view, pulled nearly out and thrust in again, driving himself even deeper. Zack arched until he was almost completely off the bed and Sephiroth's hands snaked beneath his head and back, holding him in the air above the blankets.

Cloud watched, flushed and aroused and frozen at the sight of the two beautiful bodies locked together and joining. Sephiroth was as controlled and glowing with pleasure as he had been with Cloud, but from this omniscient angle the boy could see how vulnerable the general was like this, as well. His aura of alertness and intimidation was always softened by their presence; now it seemed to fall away completely for a little while. And Zack, who was usually either fighting or joking, had surrendered, let himself remain still and be guided by the arms around him and the hand that slipped between his legs. Cloud had never seen Zack so exposed before, and was shocked and moved to see a tear or two slip down his face and onto the pillow.

Sephiroth increased speed, groaning quietly, and Zack trembled, then shook erratically, and let out something between a moan and a scream. With one last plunge, Sephiroth reached his peak as well, crying out in a way that sent a wonderful shiver up Cloud's spine. The general sank down onto Zack, propping himself up a little on one arm and tracing his features with a few warm fingers. Zack looked at Cloud with a mischievous, somewhat sleepy expression.

"That what you wanted to see, Spiky?"

Cloud opened his mouth and made an embarrassing squeaking noise.

Zack grinned. "Thought so."

Sephiroth observed the blond's dumbfounded smile. "Did you..." he asked meaningfully.

Cloud's breathing and color and his own enhanced senses told him that the boy must be hard; apparently he had very much enjoyed the show. Cloud shook his head, having been too absorbed in watching to take care of this need or, indeed, to even notice it until now. A lovely thought occurred to Sephiroth, and he gestured Cloud to come closer. Zack, having a guess about what was coming, grinned again.

When Cloud reached them, he made a startled sound as he was lifted right off his feet and brought to sit on Zack's stomach, in front of Sephiroth. His legs bent and came to rest at Zack's sides, and only then did he realize that Sephiroth had stripped his pajama pants off in mid-air. Zack unbuttoned the top and Cloud shrugged it off, exhilirated to find himself nude between them, with the evidence of his arousal beginning to leak wetness onto Zack's skin.

"Okay?" Sephiroth whispered in his ear, and Cloud nodded fervently, though he wasn't sure exactly what was about to happen.

It started to become clear. Sephiroth nudged him forward, both of them moving up until Cloud was sitting on Zack's chest and Sephiroth was putting all his own weight onto his knees to keep that pressure off of Zack. Smiling in anticipation, Zack took hold of Cloud's hips and drew him closer still, and Cloud reached down and ran his fingers through the messy black spikes. The movement filled the air between them with a lavender scent - apparently Zack's shampoo matched the color of his room.

Cloud exhaled sharply. Sephiroth's hand was lifting him carefully, trying not to apply pressure, and directing him to the nearby mouth. Zack's tongue emerged first, lapping fluid from the head, and before Cloud's moan was all the way out, the mouth had enveloped him completely. Zack sucked slowly, sometimes stopping altogether for a moment to hum or relax his throat enough to take more in. His eyes closed in rapture, like he was tasting a rare delicacy.

Gasping, Cloud grabbed the headboard with both hands and squeezed it. He wanted to push his hips forward, but Zack still gripped them and kept them in place. Probably a good thing, since Cloud didn't want to accidentally choke him. As Zack put his talented mouth to work, Sephiroth pressed his lips to the sensitive skin of Cloud's pale neck, and with one arm securely around the boy's waist, ran the other hand up and down his chest. His thumb circled one of the nipples and then rubbed it firmly, and the little bit of control inside Cloud snapped.

Zack moaned with satisfaction when Cloud came and greedily drank every bit of warm liquid that shot into his throat. When Cloud was completely drained - in more ways than one - Sephiroth lifted him again and gently placed him on the bed next to Zack, then lying himself on the other side. Feeling boneless, Cloud managed to roll onto his stomach, and turned to look when Zack spoke in a drowsy murmur.

"I think I'm dead. I've died and gone to the Lifestream."

"Really?" Sephiroth said with amusement. "Be sure to give my regards to our fallen comrades."

"Yes, sir," Zack mumbled, and promptly fell asleep.

Giggling quietly, Cloud turned to face Sephiroth, who was rolling his eyes and smiling.

"You'll have to excuse him, he's a bit useless after sex. So, how are you liking your birthday?" he asked, though the answer was clear already in the bright blue eyes.

"Best one ever. In fact, I don't think I'll ever have another day as perfect as this one."

"I accept that challenge," Sephiroth said softly, running his hand up and down Cloud's side beneath his arm. "Sleep."

"I'm afraid I'll wake up and this will have been a dream."

The confession reminded Sephiroth of something Zack had said after their first time together, and he observed Cloud lovingly with a soft silver gaze. "If it is a dream, we will have it all to do over again."

Cloud smiled, reassured. "Well, when you put it that way."

"We have six more days here, and something tells me you will need your strength tomorrow."

"You mean I can...with him?"

The general laughed quietly. "I think by tomorrow night you will be more than ready. But for the day, Zack wants to go sailing, and looking after him on a boat is a difficult task even for me."

"Now you have me to help. We'll make sure he doesn't fall overboard."

Cloud's eyes were blinking slowly, beginning to close. Sephiroth moved close enough to bring the boy's head to rest against his chest, and to reach around him for the reassuring touch of Zack's skin. Cloud snuggled against Sephiroth, mumbling something even the general's hearing couldn't quite catch, and went still, breathing as softly and regularly as Zack.

Sephiroth kept himself awake for a while, gently touching, marvelling at the beauty of the faces and bodies beside him in the moonlight. It seemed amazing that they were his, that this happiness was his. In the dark moments of his past, he could never have anticipated the perfection of this moment. An absurd, scary thought struck him - what if it _was_ only a dream? What if they all were?

Zack's voice spoke up from Sephiroth's mind, with its usual advice. _Don't think, feel._ It felt real. They felt real in his arms. And this feeling of belonging with them, to them, was much too strong to be an illusion. Smiling radiantly, a vision of silver in the subtle nighttime glow, Sephiroth closed his eyes.

_cszcszcsz_

Zack awoke when it was still mostly dark, with a faint, familiar soreness in his lower body. Careful not to disturb his bedmates, he slipped out from underneath the blanket and stood, stretching a little to wake his muscles back to life. He went soundlessly to the balcony door and looked out at the sky that was beginning to pale, the stars that were fading. Perfectly content, Zack stood there a long time, as the sun began to rise and was heralded by a palette of vivid reds, pinks and oranges.

The bed's soft creaking shook him from his reverie, and he turned to see Sephiroth wide awake already, leaning against the headboard with a stirring Cloud in his arms. Sephiroth and Zack shared a smile of understanding. They would always protect Cloud as they would always protect each other, but something had been made equal the day before. They were even now, regardless of rank and age. Sephiroth nodded his acknowledgment of this, and lowered his head to kiss the lips that were sleepily beginning to speak.

"I love you," Cloud whispered, and Sephiroth smiled and held him closer, happily running his fingers through the bright, spiky hair.

Zack worried for a moment, wondered if he could take Cloud aside at a time like this and explain that those were not throwaway words with Sephiroth, that he never spoke them as a question or an answer but only when he needed to say them. But Cloud knew this sort of thing by now or just didn't mind, because he continued to snuggle and let the silver hair fall over him like a blanket. After a few moments, Sephiroth leaned down a little and whispered something into his ear.

Maybe Sephiroth was learning too.

_That's it, Cloudy's been de-virginized! More importantly, I've placated Zacky for the moment._

_Zack: "I totally hate you less! Yay!!"_

_Another "Decorum" comes soon, and we return to the days before Zack and Sephiroth were together. But I hope this one makes up for the shameful ignoring I've been doing of the central trio here. Let me know what you think!_

_**EDIT:** Argh, I forgot - the idea of the beach house vacation owes a lot to the brilliant bjanik and her "The Other Way Around". Being the huge fan of hers that I am, I'm sure that's not the only inspiration, but I wanted to acknowledge bjanik and the influence her writing has on me. Check out her stuff if you haven't, you will sooooo thank me._


End file.
